NOVEL NEXT WORLD Side Story 5
Side Story 5. Darkness
The men had never faced those with beast-transformation skills like [Catification]. After all, beastmen were highly valued in the Inner District for their physical prowess, and even those born in the Outer District would be bought at high prices by those with Inner District connections.
They were the Inner District’s experimental magic tool unit, but ultimately just Outer District trash. A disposable force, like a lizard’s tail, meant for dirty work. So, while beastmen were said to possess superior physical abilities, they’d always assumed it was exaggerated. Their exotic appearances made them little more than playthings for the wealthy.
That’s why they considered themselves lucky to encounter a beastgirl like Karen. After toying with her, they planned to capture and sell her to the Inner District. Their boss, Kaichou, shared the same idea. But they’d forgotten one thing—that this “beauty” had been running an information broker business unscathed in the Abandoned Town they called “hell,” a trash heap unfit for human life.
And now, that oversight was coming back to collect its debt.
The creature before them had seemed like mere merchandise moments ago. In fact, they’d planned to mock her, pretending to pay before selling her off after having their fun.
But now, the cheerful, smiling beauty radiated a predator’s ferocity, her icy eyes gleaming. Beside her, their fallen comrade lay motionless on the ground.
A terror like a rabbit cornered by a wolf seized them. Sweating, yet trained as soldiers, they raised their crossbows.
“Think you’re tough?! Die!”
Two triggers pulled. The bolts flew straight for Karen’s torso—but with a cold smirk, she kicked off the ground, leaping upward. For a human, dodging mid-jump would’ve been impossible.
“Wha—?!”
Yet the beastman’s physical prowess far exceeded their expectations. The parking garage’s ceiling was low, but still five meters high. Without even a running start, Karen clung to it effortlessly. The bolts whizzed harmlessly past as the men gaped at her inhuman agility.
“You guys really underestimate beastmen-nya~?”
Baring her fangs, Karen laughed, darting between floor and ceiling like a monkey. Her speed left them unable to track her—only the sounds of her kicks echoed as they fumbled to reload.
“Nyaa~”
Mocking them, she flipped mid-air, hurling glass needles. The sharp projectiles sliced through their bulletproof vests, sinking deep into flesh.
“Gah!”
“Ugh!”
Gritting through pain, they fired wildly, but Karen twisted mid-air, dodging effortlessly before pelting them with more needles.
“Damn it!”
With each shimmer in the air, their bodies became pincushions. Unable to land a single scratch, they soon collapsed like hedgehogs, faces twisted in agony.
Confirming their deaths, Karen landed and scoffed at the corpses.
“Don’t blame me-nya~? You guys were the ones who kept pestering me-nya.”
With a cold laugh, she approached the generator.
“Honestly, these ‘guardians’ are pathetic-nya. What if I hadn’t stopped the generator-nya?”
Pressing the button, the rumbling ceased. The garage’s bare bulbs flickered out, plunging it into darkness—a world now ruled by shadows. Hidden Shadow Spiders began to stir.
“Calling this ‘repaying a favor’ is kinda harsh-nya~? Well, now the ‘Dancing Armor’ magic tool’s gone ‘missing.’ Works for me-nya.”
Poking the black cat on the generator’s nose, she grinned mischievously. The cat tilted its head, silent.
The guardian smirked as the garage lights died. Karen had delivered as expected.
“What’d you do, Amano?!”
“Did you skimp on the generator’s fuel?!”
“Quit screwing around!”
Kaichou’s roar cut through the dark as chaos erupted.
“Damn that catgirl—she did something!”
Frustrated, Kaichou ejected a spent cartridge and reloaded. Amano was nowhere to be seen. Flashlight beams sliced through the blackness as his men scrambled.
“Stay calm! Form trios—we can counter ambushes!”
His disciplined men grouped up, ready for Amano’s assault. Numbers would offset the darkness’s disadvantage.
Yet the unexpected losses enraged him. His Arachnae base defenders had been slaughtered, and now this Abandoned Town trash was thinning his ranks. Training men took time and money—what a waste.
Amano, the so-called “strongest” of the Abandoned Town? To Kaichou, he was just a weirdo in black, likely bluffing. Magic or not, he’d die easily.
Just like the other disposable trash. Hire them cheap, work them to death. Subcontracting magic tool experiments—paying 1,000 yen to Abandoned Town dwellers for tests that’d kill them. The Inner District needed human test subjects but couldn’t risk the backlash. Hence, the pyramid: Oil Sellers outsourcing to the Abandoned Town.
But this time, things had spiraled.
“Abandoned Town trash daring to defy us?! Just die already!”
Kaichou screamed, scanning for Amano, but the black-clad man had vanished into the dark.
“Numbers are hard to overcome,” Amano’s voice echoed, untraceable in the garage’s acoustics. Flashlights darted uselessly.
“So I called backup. Don’t worry—you’ll crush them easily.”
Backup? Kaichou frowned. This outpost was isolated.
Then—a sound. Tiny, skittering.
“What’s that?”
Rustling grew louder. A flashlight beam revealed…
“Nya~”
A black cat, followed by dozens more. Then—
Shadow Spiders.
A tidal wave of them, swarming toward the light. Crossbows fired desperately, but it was futile. The spiders engulfed them.
“Eeek!”
“Stay back!”
“Get off!”
Kaichou’s men were buried under skittering shadows.
“You—you brought monsters?!”
Realizing the cats were Amano’s, Kaichou nearly choked. This was insane—even Amano could’ve died!
He killed his flashlight, holding his breath.
Shadow Spiders hunted by sound. Stay silent, escape upstairs—
“Help, boss!”
“Orders!”
“GYAHH!”
Amid screams, Kaichou stayed still. Some survivors caught on, freezing. They’d live. Track Amano later and—
Clatter-clatter-clatter!
Something rained from above—wooden rods, scattering noisily. The spiders stirred toward the sound.
“The hell?!”
Kaichou’s curse sealed their fate.
“Bought ’em cheap,” Amano’s voice taunted. “Thought you could use ’em. Farewell gifts.”
“You—you bastard! I’ll kill you! Remember this, Amano!”
“Take a number. Lots want revenge. Anyway—next job, call me. Bye.”
As Kaichou howled, Amano’s presence vanished. The spiders surged over the clattering rods, biting men mid-scream.
“Mark my words, Amano! I will have vengeance!”
With [Shadow Walker] and familiars guiding me, the dark was my ally. Exiting smoothly, I squinted in the sunlight.
“Back already-nya?”
Karen, playing with the shadow cat atop the dead generator, hopped down.
“Yep. Done. Your end?”
She fake-cried, hand over her face.
“Ah, they attacked each other-nya~! Mutual kill-nya!”
“Huh. Close call.”
Mutual kill it is. Shrugging, I boarded the troop transport truck. Keys still in.
“Kaichou’s group?”
“Arachnae showed up. Unfortunate.”
Karen only cared about one thing:
“Got the rest of the cash-nya?”
Laughing, I snapped my fingers. The shadow cat dropped a wallet.
“Generous client.”
“Ooh, 100k-nya! Split halfsies?”
“After deducting your ‘scheme’ cut. Let’s head home. Tired.”
“Old man-nya? Fine, I’ll take 10%-nya~”
Smirking, I hit the gas. The truck rumbled off, leaving the silent amusement park behind.
In the Abandoned Town, allies and enemies blurred. Betrayal was routine. Tomorrow, any of us could be corpses. Just another day.